Ryan Specialty, a global specialty insurance organisation, has announced the signing of two definitive acquisition agreements.
The company is set to acquire certain assets of Geo Underwriting Europe (Geo Europe), part of the Ardonagh Group, and the P&C MGUs owned by Ethos Specialty Insurance (Ethos P&C) from Ascot Group.
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Based in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Geo Underwriting Europe also has operations in Germany and specialises in financial lines. This acquisition will see Geo Europe integrated into the Ryan Financial Lines (RFL) unit within Ryan Specialty’s Underwriting Managers division.
The deal is aligned with RFL’s European expansion objectives and is due to close in Q3 2024.
Geo Europe’s expertise lies in catering to specialised mid-sized companies and global large corporates within the EU, with a product portfolio that includes professional indemnity, management liability and cyber insurance.
Upon completion of the acquisition, Geo Europe MD and CUO Walter Craft will take on the role of managing director of RFL – Benelux and DACH, and join the RFL executive committee.
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By GlobalDataCommenting on this acquisition, RFL CEO Jamie Bouloux said: “We are very much looking forward to having the Geo Europe team join Ryan Financial Lines as we look to intensify our offering across Europe. The team has an impeccable market reputation and has produced excellent results to date. Their culture of hard work, strong personal relationships and business acumen dovetails nicely with Ryan Specialty.”
Walter Craft said: “Ryan Specialty is the right platform for Geo Europe to further strengthen its offerings and to allow our team members to really excel. Ryan Specialty Underwriting Managers’ analytical underwriting support and administrative and distribution capabilities align nicely for the next step in our journey, as we continue to focus on providing the best solutions and service to our clients.
“We are grateful to the Ardonagh Group, who have supported the launch of Geo Europe in 2019, and are very excited about this next step in joining Ryan Financial Lines and the wider Ryan Specialty family.”
The terms of the Geo Europe transaction have not been disclosed.
Following the acquisition of the P&C MGUs owned by Ethos P&C, Ryan Specialty will incorporate Ethos P&C into the Ryan Specialty Underwriting Managers division.
Ethos P&C was established in 2017 by Ascot Group.
Ethos P&C’s Transactional Liability MGU is excluded from this deal and will continue to be part of Ascot.
Ethos P&C’s portfolio includes eight programmes that underwrite on behalf of a diverse panel of insurance carriers, with specialisations in manufacturing, processing and warehousing excess property, wind deductible buydowns, and all other perils buydowns.
Ethos P&C’s casualty coverages include New York contractors, real estate, construction wraps and clean technology general liability.
It posted around $11m of operating revenue for the 12 months ended 30 June 2024.
Terms of the deal were not divulged. The acquisition is expected to close during September 2024.
Remarking on this acquisition, Ryan Specialty founder, chairman and CEO Patrick G Ryan said: “Ethos P&C has established itself as an underwriting manager offering innovation and excellent service in niche specialty lines. Their entrepreneurial spirit and complementary portfolio add depth and breadth to Ryan Specialty. We welcome this team of highly experienced underwriters and look forward to our future together.”
Ascot Group CEO and president Jonathan Zaffino said: “Ethos Specialty is a thriving underwriting services business that, since inception, has achieved strong growth and profitability for its trading partners, while bringing innovative specialty insurance programmes to the market. We are proud of the many accomplishments of our team and are confident that this strategic transaction will both advance Ascot’s long-term platform optimisation goals and foster new opportunities for the Ethos P&C team under Ryan Specialty’s ownership.”
